True North invests over Rs 500 crore in Biocon Biologics

BENGALURU:

Private equity firm

True North has invested about $74 million (Rs 536 crore) in

Biocon Biologics

, the

biosimilar arm of Biocon

, for a 2.5% stake. The deal values the unit at about $3 billion on a pre-money equity basis.


Biocon Biologics has recorded rapid growth over the last few years as many of the drugs received commercial approval in the mature markets of US and Europe. Biocon believes the segment will help it cross $1 billion in revenue this fiscal. It has a product pipeline of 28 molecules, including 11 with Mylan, several with Sandoz, and is developing many independently. This is True North’s, formerly known as India Value Fund Advisors (IVFA), third investment into Biocon. It had picked up about 10% in the contract research arm Syngene before the company went public in 2015 and also in Biocon in 2003 in a pre-IPO round.

“This is at an important inflection point as we gain commercial success with our first wave of

biosimilar

products and invest in the long term through broadening our pipeline, expanding our manufacturing capacity and increasing our commercial footprint,” Biocon chairperson and managing director

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw

said.

Biosimilars or biologics are drugs made from complex molecules manufactured using living microorganisms, plants, or animal cells. Though there are no differences in terms of safety and effectiveness from the main product, they are not considered duplicates, like generics, as it is impossible to manufacture exact copies of biotech drugs. “Biosimilars is a fast growing industry that addresses a fundamental need of bringing affordability to specialised effective biologic products,” Satish Chander, partner at True North, said.

Biocon Biologics reported revenue of Rs 1,517 crore last fiscal, almost double the Rs 770 crore it did the year before. The company is targeting revenue of $1 billion from the biologics business in the next three years.